Phoebe Prince (15) hanged herself in a closet after she became a victim of cyber

[Larz]

http://www.mydeathspace.com/article/2010/02/18/Phoebe_Prince_%2815%29_hanged_herself_in_a_closet_ after_she_became_a_victim_of_cyber_bullying


This is so sad.  It makes me want to go into public education to knock some heads around.  I'd probably just end up like Samuel L. Jackson in "One Eight Seven."

[snowfallsoon]

http://run4chocolate.wordpress.com/2010/01/27/phoebe-prince-and-the-mean-girls-of-south-hadley/

What a mess...

[Maxine8986]

When someone commits suicide because of bullying the perpetrators should be named and expelled and whatever school new they go to should be told the reason for their expulsion and make it public in that school.  Bullying should be put in the same category as hate crimes because that's what it's boiled down to.  To those snots that made this girl commit suicide

[Lazarus]

[quote author=Maxine8986 link=topic=24260.msg1542791#msg1542791 date=1266689155]
When someone commits suicide because of bullying the perpetrators should be named and expelled and whatever school new they go to should be told the reason for their expulsion and make it public in that school.  Bullying should be put in the same category as hate crimes because that's what it's boiled down to.  To those snots that made this girl commit suicide
[/quote]

i agree expect for the fu symbol

[Nocturnity]

Another one? 

This is why I make it a point every day to do at least one thing to try to boost my daughter's self esteem.

[mialynneb]

As an educator in an elementary school I have zero tolerance for bullies.  I try to instill in my kids that bullying is unacceptable and cowardice.  When a student bullies another I make the bully hold my hand the entire day until they can act like a 'big kid.' The fact that these little beasts continue to leave crude messages after Phoebe is gone - I just don't even know what to say. 

[Nocturnity]

[quote author=mialynneb link=topic=24260.msg1543026#msg1543026 date=1266706411]
As an educator in an elementary school I have zero tolerance for bullies.  I try to instill in my kids that bullying is unacceptable and cowardice.  When a student bullies another I make the bully hold my hand the entire day until they can act like a 'big kid.' The fact that these little beasts continue to leave crude messages after Phoebe is gone - I just don't even know what to say. 


[/quote]

This is awesome.  I've dealt with a couple of teachers that basically have this "kids will be kids" mentality about it.  Bullying happens.  But where some kids bounce back easily from it, others dwell on it and end up doing what this child has done.

I got bullied for two years by a kid on the bus.  Every morning and every afternoon he would pull my hair or put gum in it or run his mouth.  When we got off the bus (his house was a street behind mine) he would follow along and throw rocks at me or slap me with his backpack.  My dad had always told me to stand up for myself, but I was afraid of getting in trouble.  One day when we got off at our regular stop, and this kid was doing his daily "walk behind Ari and throw handfuls of gravel at her" routine, I saw my dad standing in the driveway.  He called both of us over and said "Ive had enough of this.  Both of you put down your backpacks."  He then pointed at me and said "Now, YOU, stand up for yourself or you're gonna get it when we go inside."  Needless to say, I wailed on that kid, right in my driveway, right in front of my dad.  He stopped the fight before the kid could get more than a couple of scratches and bruises, but that little monster never bothered me again.

[mialynneb]

[quote author=Nocturnity link=topic=24260.msg1543029#msg1543029 date=1266706903]
This is awesome.  I've dealt with a couple of teachers that basically have this "kids will be kids" mentality about it.   Bullying happens.  But where some kids bounce back easily from it, others dwell on it and end up doing what this child has done.

I got bullied for two years by a kid on the bus.  Every morning and every afternoon he would pull my hair or put gum in it or run his mouth.  When we got off the bus (his house was a street behind mine) he would follow along and throw rocks at me or slap me with his backpack.   My dad had always told me to stand up for myself, but I was afraid of getting in trouble.  One day when we got off at our regular stop, and this kid was doing his daily "walk behind Ari and throw handfuls of gravel at her" routine, I saw my dad standing in the driveway.  He called both of us over and said "Ive had enough of this.  Both of you put down your backpacks."  He then pointed at me and said "Now, YOU, stand up for yourself or you're gonna get it when we go inside."  Needless to say, I wailed on that kid, right in my driveway, right in front of my dad.  He stopped the fight before the kid could get more than a couple of scratches and bruises, but that little monster never bothered me again.
[/quote]

Go dad!  Bullies are nothing but little insecure babies.  You swat them on the nose with the newspaper and usually they'll stop.  So ridiculous - I've never been a bully but I've been bullied. I always wondered the mentality of a bully - were they not hugged enough? One thing that is a constant is that they're insecure assholes.

[Nocturnity]

[quote author=mialynneb link=topic=24260.msg1543031#msg1543031 date=1266707234]
Go dad!  Bullies are nothing but little insecure babies.  You swat them on the nose with the newspaper and usually they'll stop.  So ridiculous - I've never been a bully but I've been bullied. I always wondered the mentality of a bully - were they not hugged enough? One thing that is a constant is that they're insecure assholes.
[/quote]

Yep.  The single bullies don't worry me so much as the ones in packs, or cliques rather.  The popular ones in my high school were baaaaaaaaaaad about picking on people.  Not necessarily hurting them physically, but tormenting them and constantly teasing them.  They really never messed with me, but I've seen them reduce people to tears numerous times and since they were usually cheerleaders and football players, not a lot was done about it.  I know that with the Columbine incident, it was most definitely not the fault of the kids who were killed that Eric and Dylan did what they did, but that is who they blamed.  And there were a couple that they told to "Leave, get out of here." while the chaos was going on.  This is why I try to teach my daughter to be kind to everyone, no matter how weird or different or unpopular they are.  Its not only the right thing to do, but it could save her life.

[Kristinella]

[quote author=Nocturnity link=topic=24260.msg1542893#msg1542893 date=1266694557]
Another one? 

This is why I make it a point every day to do at least one thing to try to boost my daughter's self esteem.
[/quote]


I wanted to Karma you with "Good mom"  but my cat decided to just leave it with "G"

[Nocturnity]

[quote author=Kristinella link=topic=24260.msg1543123#msg1543123 date=1266712582]

I wanted to Karma you with "Good mom"  but my cat decided to just leave it with "G"


[/quote]

That's because kittehs govern everything we do.  Mine do anyway.

[kissmedeadly8989]

9 teens charged with ‘unrelenting’ bullying
Prosecutor says victim killed herself; two suspects also face rape charges

NORTHAMPTON, Mass. - A Massachusetts prosecutor says nine teens have been charged in the 'unrelenting' bullying of a teenage girl who killed herself, and two of them have been charged with statutory rape.

Northwestern District Attorney Elizabeth Scheibel says 15-year-old Phoebe Prince of South Hadley suffered months of nearly constant stalking and harassment in person and on-line. She killed herself Jan. 14.

Scheibel says school officials knew about this bullying, but none will face criminal charges.

[Nomad]

[quote author=kissmedeadly8989 link=topic=24260.msg1579202#msg1579202 date=1269880526]
9 teens charged with ‘unrelenting’ bullying
Prosecutor says victim killed herself; two suspects also face rape charges

NORTHAMPTON, Mass. - A Massachusetts prosecutor says nine teens have been charged in the 'unrelenting' bullying of a teenage girl who killed herself, and two of them have been charged with statutory rape.

Northwestern District Attorney Elizabeth Scheibel says 15-year-old Phoebe Prince of South Hadley suffered months of nearly constant stalking and harassment in person and on-line. She killed herself Jan. 14.

Scheibel says school officials knew about this bullying, but none will face criminal charges.


[/quote]

So, two of them had sex with her and then joined in on the bullying?

9 kids banded together to bully this girl until she killed herself?  That's fucking insane!  Again with the question:  Where do 9 scumbags find each other?  Is there a Match.com for asshole pricks?

[leyash]

Blah... sick, sick, sick.

People are so hateful these days. To take it to the point they did, is insane to me. I feel so bad for her, she was so young. :/

RIP

[sarabei]

Man, why?  That is fucking insane... why are people so cruel?  What did they accomplish from this?  How can people so young be so full of hate??

[sarabei]

http://www.wggb.com/Global/story.asp?S=12025608&nav=menu1460_2_2

A bit more infor...

[leyash]

[quote author=sarabei link=topic=24260.msg1579231#msg1579231 date=1269882845]
http://www.wggb.com/Global/story.asp?S=12025608&nav=menu1460_2_2

A bit more infor...
[/quote]

Wow, ugh.
What are the parents going to do now, though? These kids are going to have to go to another school, who is to say they won't do it again to someone else?

[kevansvault]

[quote author=leyash link=topic=24260.msg1579242#msg1579242 date=1269883708]
Wow, ugh.
What are the parents going to do now, though? These kids are going to have to go to another school, who is to say they won't do it again to someone else?

[/quote]

I think these kids will be going to alternative school after this...if they're not in jail already, the stupid little fuckers.  And in alternative school, they take nooo bullshit.  You do what they say when they say it, or the punishment is swift and severe.  Sorry little shits.

[leyash]

[quote author=kevansvault link=topic=24260.msg1579255#msg1579255 date=1269884133]
I think these kids will be going to alternative school after this...if they're not in jail already, the stupid little fuckers.  And in alternative school, they take nooo bullshit.  You do what they say when they say it, or the punishment is swift and severe.  Sorry little shits.
[/quote]

Well, maybe that's the best idea.
And I don't know... these kids don't seem to be doing this as part of the "in-crowd" thing... I think there's more to it than that. They have to be severely angry about something, for them to keep on her even after she already killed herself. That takes a pretty cold heart to do that, if you ask me.

[emmy_dreamy]

[quote author=kevansvault link=topic=24260.msg1579255#msg1579255 date=1269884133]
I think these kids will be going to alternative school after this...if they're not in jail already, the stupid little fuckers.  And in alternative school, they take nooo bullshit.  You do what they say when they say it, or the punishment is swift and severe.  Sorry little shits.
[/quote]

I say they complete their education in Juvenile detention.  As far as I'm concerned they should all be there until the state deems they are fit for society. 

[WarMachine]

I still haven't seen anything regarding the statutory rape charges that the two guys named in the indictment received.  Were they ex-boyfriends or was the rape angle part of the harassment/assault that the two groups of teens were doing? Further, was there some incident where they actually physically assaulted her?

Most of the stories I've read talk about the cyber-bullying side of it and kind of skip over everything else.

[mysticgirl5]

I would like to know what's going on with the new 'rape' scenario as well - if it was a willing encounter but the guy was 18?  Or was it forced and then they bullied her on top of it?  Just when I didn't think it could get more awful... 

This is so heartbreaking.  Her parents brought her from Ireland for this.  They must be in hell right now.  How awful.

I have little hope that anything permanent will happen to these little brats, or that anything will finally penetrate their heartless hides. 

[WarMachine]

[quote author=mysticgirl5 link=topic=24260.msg1579383#msg1579383 date=1269892861]
I would like to know what's going on with the new 'rape' scenario as well - if it was a willing encounter but the guy was 18?  Or was it forced and then they bullied her on top of it?  Just when I didn't think it could get more awful... 

This is so heartbreaking.  Her parents brought her from Ireland for this.  They must be in hell right now.  How awful.

I have little hope that anything permanent will happen to these little brats, or that anything will finally penetrate their heartless hides. 
[/quote]

It says that one of the two charged with statutory was 18, the other was 17.  All of them are facing pretty hefty charges with some serious time attached. Aside from the two rape charges, it's going to be interesting to see if the prosecution is going to be able to get convictions, since this is somewhat new territory for the courts (i.e. cyber-bullying, cause/effect). I somehow think that this case is going to get a whole lot nastier once discovery starts getting released, because from the looks and tone of the State's Attorney, it seems they have a lot of evidence to base the charges on.

Terrible for the poor girl and her family. It's going to be hell to have to face all of what these kids have done to their daughter, some of which they probably weren't even aware of.

[kevansvault]

[quote author=leyash link=topic=24260.msg1579272#msg1579272 date=1269884751]
Well, maybe that's the best idea.
And I don't know... these kids don't seem to be doing this as part of the "in-crowd" thing... I think there's more to it than that. They have to be severely angry about something, for them to keep on her even after she already killed herself. That takes a pretty cold heart to do that, if you ask me.
[/quote]

Oh, they are their own crowd.  These little asshats are truly the cream of the crop.  Seriously though, kids these days are mean as fucking hell, and when they get into a group they can be as hateful as  you've ever seen.  If it were up to me they'd all spend a month in solitary confinement.  That may or may not accomplish one of two things: 1. Make them think long and hard about what they had done and the consequences, or 2.  Drive them batshit crazy.  It's a win-win really.
This is why I think it's so important for parents to be involved with their kids...I don't think these kids have good parental role models.  I bet you any amount of money one of their parents has overheard a conversation where one of them has said "So and so is such a bitch, I mean, did you see what she was wearing today?  And that accent...lolz...where the fuck is she from, anyway?"  That's where you grab the phone and get the story..."oh, it's just this new girl at school, and she's such a bitch."...Until you sit your kid down and say "hey, my dumbass progeny, did you ever think that she's not talking because she feels a little out of place?  Did you ever consider she might want friends but is too shy to ask or to make them herself?  Sometimes people need a helping hand at stuff like that.  My son and some friends teased a kid like that a few years ago, until the boy's mother came over and had a conversation with me and my wife...then we got to make our son feel bad for treating someone in a way he didn't ever want to be treated.   We were lucky, it worked.  We got that full on crying apologetic reaction too.  Now they're best of friends.  Yeah, give them a month of solitary darkness.  And some people skills.

[super_mom]

[quote author=kevansvault link=topic=24260.msg1579475#msg1579475 date=1269897831]
Oh, they are their own crowd.  These little asshats are truly the cream of the crop.  Seriously though, kids these days are mean as fucking hell, and when they get into a group they can be as hateful as  you've ever seen.  If it were up to me they'd all spend a month in solitary confinement.  That may or may not accomplish one of two things: 1. Make them think long and hard about what they had done and the consequences, or 2.  Drive them batshit crazy.  It's a win-win really.
This is why I think it's so important for parents to be involved with their kids...I don't think these kids have good parental role models.  I bet you any amount of money one of their parents has overheard a conversation where one of them has said "So and so is such a bitch, I mean, did you see what she was wearing today?  And that accent...lolz...where the fuck is she from, anyway?"  That's where you grab the phone and get the story..."oh, it's just this new girl at school, and she's such a bitch."...Until you sit your kid down and say "hey, my dumbass progeny, did you ever think that she's not talking because she feels a little out of place?  Did you ever consider she might want friends but is too shy to ask or to make them herself?  Sometimes people need a helping hand at stuff like that.  My son and some friends teased a kid like that a few years ago, until the boy's mother came over and had a conversation with me and my wife...then we got to make our son feel bad for treating someone in a way he didn't ever want to be treated.   We were lucky, it worked.   We got that full on crying apologetic reaction too.  Now they're best of friends.   Yeah, give them a month of solitary darkness.  And some people skills.
[/quote]

This is so true & sickening! My little cousin was playing a "Bratz" video game and one of the characters said something like, "I'm not talking to you until you change clothes." I was childless at that point but made a decision that I would not allow any of my children to play with Bratz dolls.

Parents just don't discipline children effectively  - for the most part - these days. I have a friend who is 72 or 73 & I love listening to her stories. Just today she told me about when she was 15 she got grounded for a year for stealing one trinket from the dime store. A whole year!!! She never stole again.